The Alpha King Marked Me. I Still Haven't Told Him I'm A Girl novel Chapter 140

Chapter 140: One Hundred & Forty

*Lucien*

My brain is made of wool.

I must have passed out at some point between filling the emptiness deep inside me with Lucien’s blood and spasming against him, because my eyes drift open and I am swaddled in what feels like a cloak, my cheeks pressed against a hard wall of heat, tucked in tight by strong arms that hold firmly.

My lashes flutter.

Blood.

The Silvermoor castle is painted red. There are bodies strewn this way and that and our soldiers flanking us.

"Good to see you again, Your Grace."

My head lolls left and I see Trenton’s dark eyes. There’s a slash running along his neck. Someone must have gotten close enough to nearly decapitate him. I try to ask if he’s alright but my mouth feels like it’s been muzzled. Every bone in my body hurts. Even breathing feels like a chore.

"Leave her alone," Lucien snaps. "Stop looking at her like that."

"But she looks--"

"Shut the fuck up."

I force my gaze open again, meet violet eyes roving over my face with worry. *"What’s wrong?"* I start to ask, but my throat won’t work right.

He hears my thoughts anyway. "Nothing. It’ll pass."

I’m too drained to argue with him, so I don’t.

Something else draws my attention in my peripheral, and I tip my head to the side, finding the guards dragging a frail woman forward. Her hair is pale white and her skin is of the same sickly parlor, like the life has been drained out of her. Even worse, it reminds me of Cecilia, the crystallized, leathery patterns that ran along her skin and the dark veins that stretched underneath.

My stomach churns as ghostly white eyes flick to me. They’re the same shade with the white of her eyes. I feel many different things at once. Hate. Sorrow. Disgust. I don’t even know who that is and it makes me feel odd. *"Who is that?"* I ask, mind-to-mind.

Lucien’s lips twitch. "Lilith."

Surprise blossoms in my chest. *"What did you do to her?"*

"Gave her a makeover." He looks affronted by the horror that manages to slip through the tiredness and register in my widening eyes. *"That’s not funny, Lucien."*

A silver eyebrow arches. "Isn’t it?"

I mean to respond but a wave of fatigue slams into me and I lose a grip on my thoughts and consciousness for a bit. When my eyes open again, we’re outside the ruined castle and I’m being laid across the seat of a carriage gently.

"You’re sure leaving Silverthorn in charge here is the best option?" Trenton murmurs.

Lucien slips inside with me. "He’s not. Giving him the illusion that he is will aid his better performance. Moreover, I am in no mood for any more dramatics. I’m sure we’ve spooked them enough to last generations. If he says it is King Lucien’s order, they will abide by it. Until we find someone fit to rule these parts." A pause. A mumble. Another grumble. An annoyed growl. "It’s been a rough couple of months, Trent. Give me a damned break."

The carriage door slams shut.

I am moved slightly, so that I am draped across his thighs in the most comfortable manner, and fingers thread lightly into my hair along with a soft murmur, "I should’ve been here sooner."

*"It’s okay,"* I think tiredly as the carriage kicks into a lurch.

His head hangs and I see that the playfulness is gone in his eyes and all of that hardened armor is crushed and there is only weariness and guilt in them. "I’m sorry, Val." His fingers run over my stomach lightly and his throat bobs before his violet meets mine again, bright with... angry tears. Anger at himself, I realize. "I’m sorry."

Despite the protest in my bones, I force myself up. I force air into my lungs and strength to my voice. I cup his cheeks. "You came for me--"

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